The longer I own it the more annoying these problems become.
1. Thick windshield pillars and useless pillar windows make corner visibility difficult.
2. High roofline (fully 6 inches taller than my 03 Crown Vic), makes washing and cleaning a real pain.
3. Rear view mirrors cars aren't closer, they simply don't show when beside you.
4. Car is a rolling blind spot with high doors, small side windows.
5. Guess-O-Meter is very aptly named.
6. Fabric padding on door panels and console wears quickly.
7. Too tall of gear ratio for city driving, needs two speed trany, low range for up 50 m.p.h. and high for open road driving.
8. Far too heavy....weighs just 300 pounds less than my 03 Crown Vic.

Good points:
1. Am learning what to look for in my next electric.
2. Don't need to use wipers in moderate rain over 40 m.p.h. as windshield blows clean without wipers.
3. It is more efficient at current gas and electric prices but just barely over my Metro.
4. Learning all about momentum driving.
5. Fun car to just sit with and study to try and figure why they did what they did.
6. It's paid for and a good learning experience.

groingo wrote:3. It is more efficient at current gas and electric prices but just barely over my Metro.

How much do you pay for gasoline and electricity? I pay about $15 per month. I was paying more than twice that in my diesel Golf that would get 60mpg on the highway. And diesel here is cheaper than midgrade. And that's a whole lot cheaper than the $200 per month I was paying for driving a Chevy Astro.

In Washington State the price of gas keeps bouncing around $2.80 a gallon with more increase in gas taxes due in July.
Electricity is climbing as well as PSE just increased rates for the third time in 2017 with another on its way.
Currently when you figure the cost of electricity, basic fee and sundry taxes on electricity and the cost of gas to go the same distance electricity it comes to $1.34 gas vs 0.89 for electric for a 22 mile round trip.

groingo wrote:In Washington State the price of gas keeps bouncing around $2.80 a gallon with more increase in gas taxes due in July.
Electricity is climbing as well as PSE just increased rates for the third time in 2017 with another on its way.
Currently when you figure the cost of electricity, basic fee and sundry taxes on electricity and the cost of gas to go the same distance electricity it comes to $1.34 gas vs 0.89 for electric for a 22 mile round trip.

Ouch!

I pay less than 10¢ a kWh with taxes and all. My electric bill is up this past month about $15 from last year. In the winter it actually was about the same. Probably because I used to plug in the 1,000kW block heater on my diesel all night every night. And if I go downtown to the free charging station the charging is free. I did a 380 mile trip once in the Leaf using all free L1 and L2 charging (CHAdeMO isn't available) except the initial charge I got from home. So the whole trip cost me around $1.50. Diesel is around $2.70 per gallon. So at 60mpg it would have cost me a little over $17.

I like the high roof. Finally I fit in a car. In my Golf my head rubs on the ceiling even with the seat inclined back more than I'd like. And my height makes a terrible blind spot where the review mirror is. Add to the fact my wife is short and therefore constantly creates another blind spot when she pulls down her sun visor. In the Golf I reinstalled the mirror as high at it will go, and now it's too high because it only lets me see the ground behind the car. But in the Leaf this isn't as much of a problem.

(Hint: To correctly aim the mirrors in my LEAF, I lean a bit to the left and adjust the mirror just past seeing the side of the car. Do the same for the right mirror. You will NOT be able to see cars behind you with your side mirrors but you will be able to see cars next to you.)

groingo wrote:7. Too tall of gear ratio for city driving, needs two speed trany, low range for up 50 m.p.h. and high for open road driving.

I will take the trade-off of not having to worry about a transmission in my car. Especially after the repeated transmission failures in the gen 1 Tesla Roadsters. That's why Tesla dropped the tranny (pun intended).

I cannot understand why someone would start a topic with these comments and "complaints". No offense to you, but I cannot see how the Leaf has negatives like being taller or more heavy than your old car. Also, your complaints about how much it costs to run the Leaf sounds totally off the mark.

I think that the list of comments are not really pros and cons, but fall into the category of "it is what it is".....

I wish the Leaf was bigger
I'd prefer it to be taller, dislike having to sit down in the seats, I like the seating in something like a Rav4 or CRV.
I'd MUCH prefer the rear seats and cargo to be bigger. I can get by with the front seats but especially cargo area is woefully small.
Weight is OK, heavier is generally better for a decent ride. My old light(1650 lbs) Geo Metro got great mileage but drove very light, also basically a death trap, but I survived
IMO the Leaf has too much low end power now(I never venture out of ECO) can't see why I'd want it geared lower High end seems OK, easily does 80 and I have no real need to go faster.
Never use the GOM and I agree about blind spots, MUCH worse than my Metro or Scion Xb. I removed the rear seat headrests for a bit better view.

All cars are a compromise, in my case being a BEV was #1 priority, I overlooked many things to attain that, if you like a smaller/lighter BEV then maybe an i3? I won't insult your intelligence by suggesting an iMe, although it is smaller and lighter

I once rented an HHR for a road trip along Route 66. It's the only car I've ever driven with a FRONT blind spot. I almost ran over a pedestrian right in front of the rental car office because the front visibility was so bad.

All in the name of better visibility. Today's cars are a LOT taller than yesterday's cars.

It's not so much for visibility (see #1) but rather for ease of ingress/egress. It's one of the reasons why CUVs and SUVs are so popular. Nissan should have tweaked the design to make it more CUV-like; a lot of the design traits are already there. It may also not have ended up looking so awkward.

groingo wrote:7. Too tall of gear ratio for city driving, needs two speed trany, low range for up 50 m.p.h. and high for open road driving.

I will take the trade-off of not having to worry about a transmission in my car. Especially after the repeated transmission failures in the gen 1 Tesla Roadsters. That's why Tesla dropped the tranny (pun intended).

Yup. The whole point of a transmission is because an ICE does not have a consistent level of torque across its rev range; too low a gear and the engine will be screaming at a given speed, too high a gear and the car will bog down if not stall. Electric motors have almost all if not all their torque available from the moment they start turning.

Good points:
3. It is more efficient at current gas and electric prices but just barely over my Metro.

Much better crash survivability than the Metro. Probably right up there with the Crown Vic.

First of all, the Metro is much smaller than a Leaf. The Metro barely seats 4 people, not necessarily in comfort. The Leaf can fit 4 people easily and a 5th in a pinch.

Second, you also have to understand that the "Panther" platform the Crown Vic (and Lincoln Town Car) is based upon dates back to 1978 or 1979; the famous police Crown Vics actually share much of the same underpinnings as the "Wagon Queen Family Truckster" from the "Vacation" movie. It's why Ford had to stop making them despite demand from police departments and taxi fleets; the design is so old they could not make it meet future government standards for a reasonable price.

Cars in general have gotten heavier over the years due to mandatory government regulations (crash standards in particular) and consumer demand for niceties like electric windows and A/C. It's why you're far more likely to survive a crash in a Leaf (or any modern car, even a 3 cylinder Mitsubishi Mirage which is the closest thing on sale today) than an old Metro.